A longtime employee of the Wood River Land Trust who's been instrumental in many of the organization's key projects along the Big Wood River has decided to set her sights on new opportunities.
Kathryn Goldman, the group's senior project coordinator, will show up for work at the offices of the Hailey-based organization for the last time on Friday, June 4. The land trust has not hired anyone to replace Goldman, who has been with the group for the past five years. She moved to the valley seven years ago.
Speaking Tuesday, Goldman said she's decided to take some time to reflect on different professional opportunities. She said her future almost certainly includes some type of conservation work. She said she does plan to remain in the Wood River Valley.
"I'm going to think about how I want to participate in my community," she said. "It's time for change."
Goldman said some of the highlights of her work in the valley include putting together the land trust's Healthy Waters, Healthy Futures program, educating the public on the importance of preserving local floodplains and establishing the group's Trout Friendly Lawn program.
The common theme of her work was almost always the Big Wood River, she said.
She stressed that protecting undeveloped lands along the river, a big part of the land trust's aims, is just one component of protecting the river—the choices residents make along the Big Wood are also important. She said the land trust is also about educating the public about how they can keep the river healthy by making choices in lawn care and other daily practices that preserve the Big Wood's clear waters.
"If we want it to be healthy in the future, we all have to take some measure of responsibility in our own backyards," she said.
Jason Kauffman: jkauffman@mtexpress.com